U.S. patent application number 17/279754 was filed with the patent office on 2022-02-03 for methods of conveying buffer status with mixed critical and non-critical traffic.
The applicant listed for this patent is Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (PUBL). Invention is credited to Abdulrahman Alabbasi, John Walter Diachina, Torsten Dudda, Henrik Enbuske, Jonas Froberg Olsson, Jose Luis Pradas, Min Wang, Zhenhua Zou.
Application Number | 20220039111 17/279754 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | |
Filed Date | 2022-02-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20220039111 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Alabbasi; Abdulrahman ; et
al. |
February 3, 2022 |
Methods of Conveying Buffer Status with Mixed Critical and
Non-Critical Traffic
Abstract
A method by a wireless device (110) includes determining that
the wireless device has data to transmit on at least one logical
channel of a priority N. The logical channel is associated with at
least one logical channel group. The method further includes
generating, by the wireless device, a buffer status report of type
N, BSR N, for the at least one logical channel of the priority N
and prioritizing a transmission of the BSR N for the at least one
logical channel of priority N over a data transmission for at least
one other logical channel that has a priority that is higher than
the priority N.
Inventors: |
Alabbasi; Abdulrahman;
(Kista, SE) ; Dudda; Torsten; (Wassenberg, DE)
; Wang; Min; (LULE, SE) ; Diachina; John
Walter; (GARNER, NC) ; Zou; Zhenhua; (SOLNA,
SE) ; Pradas; Jose Luis; (STOCKHOLM, SE) ;
Enbuske; Henrik; (STOCKHOLM, SE) ; Olsson; Jonas
Froberg; (LJUNGSBRO, SE) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (PUBL) |
Stockholm |
|
SE |
|
|
Appl. No.: |
17/279754 |
Filed: |
September 24, 2019 |
PCT Filed: |
September 24, 2019 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/SE2019/050907 |
371 Date: |
March 25, 2021 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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62737560 |
Sep 27, 2018 |
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International
Class: |
H04W 72/12 20060101
H04W072/12 |
Claims
1.-32. (canceled)
33. A method performed by a wireless device, the method comprising:
prioritizing-transmission of data associated with a first logical
channel according to a first priority associated with the first
logical channel; determining that the wireless device has data to
transmit on at least one second logical channel of a priority N
that is less than the first priority, the second logical channel
being associated with at least one logical channel group C;
generating a buffer status report of type N, BSR N, for the second
logical channel; starting a timer when the BSR N is generated, and
in response to an expiration of the timer before transmission of
the BSR N; prioritizing a transmission of the BSR N for the at
least one second logical channel over a data transmission for the
first logical channel.
34. The method of claim 33, further comprising starting a timer
when the BSR N is generated, and wherein the transmission of the
BSR N is prioritized over the data transmission for the at least
one other logical channel having the first priority that is higher
than the at least one logical channel of priority N in response to
expiration of the timer.
35. The method of claim 34, wherein the priority N of the BSR N is
increased in response to expiration of the timer to a level that is
equal to or greater than the first priority.
36. The method of claim 33, further comprising placing the BSR N
associated with the logical channel of priority N into a medium
access control protocol data unit, MAC PDU, and transmitting the
MAC PDU to a network node.
37. The method of claim 33 further comprising determining that an
amount of the data that the wireless device has to transmit on the
at least one first logical channel is greater than a threshold, and
wherein the transmission of the BSR N is prioritized over the
transmission for the at least one first logical channel having the
first priority that is higher than the priority N of the BSR N in
response to determining that the amount of the data is greater than
the threshold.
38. The method of claim 33, further comprising determining an
amount of time that the data associated with the at least one
second logical channel of priority N has been waiting in a buffer,
and wherein the transmission of the BSR N is prioritized over the
transmission for the at least one first logical channel having the
first priority that is higher than the priority N in response to
determining that the amount of time is greater than a
threshold.
39. The method of claim 33, wherein the data associated with the at
least one first logical channel comprises data from a critical
Logical Channel.
40. A computer program comprising instructions which when executed
on a computer perform the method of claim 33.
41. A computer program product comprising computer program, the
computer program comprising instructions which when executed on a
computer perform the method of claim 33.
42. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions
which when executed by a computer perform the method of claim
33.
43. A wireless device comprising: processing circuitry configured
to: prioritizing transmission of data associated with a first
logical channel according to a first priority associated with the
first logical channel; determine that the wireless device has data
to transmit on at least one logical channel of a priority N, that
is less than the first priority, the logical channel being
associated with at least one logical channel group; generate a
buffer status report of type N, BSR N, for the at least one second
logical channel of the priority N; and starting a timer when the
BSR N is generated, and in response to an expiration of the timer
before transmission of the BSR N; prioritize a transmission of the
BSR N for the at least one second logical channel over a data
transmission for the first logical channel.
44. The wireless device of claim 43, wherein the processing
circuitry is configured to start a timer when the BSR N is
generated, and wherein the transmission of the BSR N is prioritized
over the transmission for the at least one first logical channel
having the first priority in response to expiration of the
timer.
45. The wireless device of claim 44, wherein the priority N of the
BSR N is increased in response to expiration of the timer to a
level that is equal to or greater than the first priority of the at
least one first logical channel having the priority that is higher
than the priority N.
46. The wireless device of claim 43, wherein the processing
circuitry is configured to place the BSR N associated with the at
least one logical channel of priority N into a medium access
control protocol data unit, MAC PDU and transmit the MAC PDU to a
network node.
47. The wireless device of claim 43, wherein the processing
circuitry is configured to determine that an amount of the data
that the wireless device has to transmit on the at least one other
logical channel is greater than a threshold, and wherein the
transmission of the BSR N is prioritized over the transmission for
the at least one other logical channel having the priority that is
higher than the priority N in response to determining that the
amount of the data is greater than the threshold.
48. The wireless device of claim 43, wherein the processing
circuitry is configured to determine an amount of time that the
data associated with the at least one second logical channel of
priority N has been waiting in a buffer, and wherein the
transmission of the BSR N is prioritized over the transmission for
the at least one first logical channel having the first priority
that is higher than the priority N in response to determining that
the amount of time is greater than a threshold.
49. The wireless device of claim 43, wherein the data associated
with the at least one first logical channel comprises data from
critical Logical Channel.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] Industrial Internet of Things (IoT) verticals are identified
as one of the use cases for 5G. In particular, one area of focus is
that of integrating Ethernet Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN)
traffic with 5G systems which serve to relay TSN traffic it
receives from TSN networks to end-stations and vice-versa. This
requires that 5G systems should support ultra-reliable low latency
communication (URLLC) traffic.
[0002] Such enhancements to support URLLC can be addressed from
several communication layers in the overall protocol stack, among
which is the medium access control (MAC) layer. One main issue to
be addressed is the logical channels (LCH) prioritization (LCP)
procedures which occurs at the MAC layer. Such procedures help MAC
layer to prioritize LCHs (associated with radio link control
protocol data units (RLC PDUs)) to be packed in the MAC protocol
data unit (PDU). After several selection steps in the legacy MAC
LCP, in New Radio (NR), the data (traffic) for logical channels and
control information (MAC CEs) are prioritized in accordance to the
following priorities (lowest number means highest priority), as
discussed in 3GPP TS 38.321 as follows: [0003] 1. C-RNTI MAC CE or
data from uplink common control channel (UL-CCCH); [0004] 2.
Configured Grant Confirmation MAC CE; [0005] 3. MAC CE for buffer
status report (BSR), with exception of BSR included for padding;
[0006] 4. Single Entry power headroom (PHR) MAC CE or Multiple
Entry PHR MAC CE; [0007] 5. Data from any Logical Channel, except
data from UL-CCCH; [0008] 6. MAC CE for Recommended bit rate query;
[0009] 7. MAC CE for BSR included for padding.
[0010] This legacy solution for prioritization does not enable a
high enough priority to be placed on the URLLC traffic supported by
one or more LCHs to ensure its latency performance will be
sufficient for supporting Industrial IoT applications. This is due
to concern for cases where the MAC PDU might be small enough to
only accommodate the first four priorities of information (all MAC
Control Elements (MAC CEs) for different LCHs), i.e., Cell-Radio
Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) MAC CE+Configured Grant (CG)
MAC CE+Buffer Status Report (BSR) MAC CE+Power Headroom (PHR) MAC
CE. If such a case occurs when the network adopts time division
duplexing (TDD), then the latency impact on URLLC traffic is even
larger due to user equipments (UEs) operating without the
possibility of overlapping transmission (TX) and reception (RX) in
the time domain. To overcome this problem, WO2018/141952 has
proposed to dynamically assign the priorities among LCHs and some
MAC CEs, which allows the option of configuring URLLC LCH's
priority above that of MAC CE BSRs.
[0011] In WO2018/141952, a dynamic priority list, transmitted in IE
MAC-DynamicPrioConfig, can be configured to support a higher
priority for the critical LCH traffic (e.g., URLLC traffic), see
below (with minor changes),
TABLE-US-00001 MAC-DynamicPrioConfig ::= SEQUENCE {
CRNTICE_or_ULCCCH_IND INTEGER CGCE_IND INTEGER, BSRCE_IND INTEGER,
PHRCE_IND INTEGER, SIDEBSRCE_IND INTEGER, LCH1_IND INTEGER,
LCH2_IND INTEGER, . . . LCHN_IND INTEGER, BRQ_IND INTEGER,
PADDBSRCE_IND INTEGER, }
[0012] The above dynamic assignment of priorities can be reflected
in the standard static form as follows: [0013] 1. C-RNTI MAC CE or
data from UL-CCCH; [0014] 2. Configured Grant Confirmation MAC CE;
[0015] 3. data from critical Logical Channel; [0016] 4. MAC CE for
BSR, with exception of BSR included for padding; [0017] 5. Single
Entry PHR MAC CE or Multiple Entry PHR MAC CE; [0018] 6. data from
any (non-critical) Logical Channel, except data from UL-CCCH;
[0019] 7. MAC CE for Recommended bit rate query; [0020] 8. MAC CE
for BSR included for padding.
[0021] This dynamic assignment of priorities (per WO2018/141952)
targets the situation where the uplink (UL) grant cannot
accommodate all MAC CEs and all the critical LCHs. This could
happen because of the change in fading channel, which impacts the
Modulation Coding Scheme (MCS) table index, and hence for
deteriorating radio conditions it reduces the size of the MAC
PDU.
[0022] However, designing the network to meet only the URLLC
traffic requirements is not good enough for supporting industrial
verticals as non-URLLC traffic still has delay requirements that
can be violated if it experiences repeated instances of
down-prioritization by the LCP procedure. Industrial verticals also
need to support a mixed-traffic with Enhanced Mobile Broadband
(eMBB) and URLLC. This mixed-services situation occurs in
industrial robot arms or other scenarios, where one robot arm has a
single radio module and multiple nodes of different priority
traffic, i.e., critical, monitoring, and sensing traffics. Mixing
URLLC with the existing enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) (and
conventional) traffic add more challenges to the existing
problem.
[0023] Certain problems exist, however. For example, NR rel-15 is
not able to efficiently accommodate mixed URLLC and eMBB services.
This is especially relevant for industrial IoT cases. This
efficiency problem exists whether or not the solution called for by
WO2018/141952 is considered. For example, when excluding the
dynamic priority assignment of WO2018/141952, there is the case
where MAC CE for BSR takes precedence over critical URLLC data
which can lead to excessive delays in sending critical URLLC data.
As another example, when including the dynamic priority assignment
of WO2018/141952, there is the case where critical URLLC data takes
precedence over MAC CE for BSR which can lead to excessive delays
in sending eMBB traffic.
[0024] One scenario includes a mix of services/LCHs traffic coming
to the MAC LCH buffer continuously. In such scenario, medium/low
priority traffic might be punished by increasing the priority of a
critical LCH, because if channel is in deep fading, and MAC PDU
barely accommodates the critical LCH, then medium/low LCHs BSRs
will be ignored and never transmitted, especially because BSR might
be triggered without the knowledge of gNB. This situation become
worse if the periodicity of the critical LCH is very short (very
frequent transmissions), in some realistic scenarios a 0.5 msec
periodicity of critical data is faced [3GPP TR 22.804]. In this
case, punishment of medium/low traffic, e.g., eMBB, will be
severe.
[0025] In 3GPP TS 38.321, a regular BSR is triggered if [0026] the
MAC entity has new UL data available for a logical channel which
belongs to a logical channel group (LCG); and either [0027] 1. the
new UL data belongs to a logical channel with higher priority than
the priority of any logical channel containing available UL data
which belong to any LCG; or [0028] 2. none of the logical channels
which belong to an LCG contains any available UL data.
[0029] The above condition means that an arrival of new UL data in
a low priority LCH does not trigger a regular BSR, if high priority
LCH also has data available for transmission. As used above, the
term "available UL data" refers to UL data available to the MAC
entity.
[0030] Secondly, applying the aforementioned (i.e. WO2018/141952)
prioritization techniques of having critical LCH's priority higher
than that of the MAC CE might also starve non-critical LCH, even if
the BSR is triggered (for example, periodical BSRs may be sent for
a non-critical LCH but the transmission of the non-critical LCH
data may be deferred excessively).
[0031] One solution would be to always send a large grant to
accommodate more than the (estimated) critical LCH data and so that
padding BSR can be sent. But that would not be spectrally
efficient, considering especially the cost of resource usage for
URLLC, where very robust transmissions are required, i.e. it is
infeasible to consistently provide larger grants just in case an
unexpected increase of non-critical LCH payload occurs.
SUMMARY
[0032] Certain aspects of the present disclosure and their
embodiments may provide solutions to these or other challenges. For
example, according to certain embodiments, a method is provided
that enables the MAC multiplexing/prioritization procedures to
better support the transmission of critical traffic. (e.g. high
priority URLLC traffic).
[0033] According to certain embodiments, a method by a wireless
device includes determining that the wireless device has data to
transmit on at least one logical channel of a priority N. The
logical channel is associated with at least one logical channel
group. The method further includes generating, by the wireless
device, a buffer status report of type N, BSR N, for the at least
one logical channel of the priority N and prioritizing a
transmission of the BSR N for the at least one logical channel of
priority N over a data transmission for at least one other logical
channel that has a priority that is higher than the priority N.
[0034] According to certain embodiments, a wireless device includes
processing circuitry configured to determine that the wireless
device has data to transmit on at least one logical channel of a
priority N. The logical channel is associated with at least one
logical channel group. The processing circuitry generates a BSR N
for the at least one logical channel of the priority N and
prioritizes a transmission of the BSR N for the at least one
logical channel of priority N over a data transmission for at least
one other logical channel that has a priority that is higher than
the priority N.
[0035] According to certain embodiments, a method by a network node
includes transmitting, to a wireless device, information
associating at least one logical channel with a priority N and at
least one other logical channel with a priority that is higher than
the priority N. The at least one logical channel is associated with
at least one logical channel group. The method further includes
receiving, from the wireless device, a BSR N associated with data
to be transmitted on the at least one logical channel of the
priority N. The BSR N associated with the data to be transmitted on
the at least one logical channel with the priority N is prioritized
over a data transmission for the at least one other logical channel
of the priority that is higher than the priority N.
[0036] According to certain embodiments, a network node includes
processing circuitry configured to transmit, to a wireless device,
information associating at least one logical channel with a
priority N and at least one other logical channel with a priority
that is higher than the priority N. The at least one logical
channel is associated with at least one logical channel group. The
processing circuitry is further configured to receive, from the
wireless device, a BSR N associated with data to be transmitted on
the at least one logical channel of the priority N. The BSR N
associated with the data to be transmitted on the at least one
logical channel with the priority N is prioritized over a data
transmission for the at least one other logical channel of the
priority that is higher than priority N.
[0037] Certain embodiments may provide one or more of the following
technical advantages. For example, one technical advantage may be
that certain embodiments solve some issues related to the mixed
traffic and those introduced by techniques that allow for
increasing the priority of data sent for a LCH compared to the MAC
CE BSR. By introducing the concept of migrating the "normal BSR"
(which can point to and triggered by one or more LCG) to a
"critical BSR" we avoid punishing other LCHs supporting lower
priority traffic for the same UE such as, for example, when
included in a MAC PDU the "critical BSR" will indicate the
availability of traffic for LCHs carrying both critical and
normal/low priority traffic, upon availability of resources in the
MAC PDU. As another example, another technical advantage of certain
embodiments may be the introduction of several triggering
mechanisms of the BSRs. As still another example, another technical
advantage may be that the specification requirement to trigger BSR
and SR is modified.
[0038] Other advantages may be readily apparent to one having skill
in the art. Certain embodiments may have none, some, or all of the
recited advantages.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0039] For a more complete understanding of the disclosed
embodiments and their features and advantages, reference is now
made to the following description, taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings, in which:
[0040] FIG. 1 illustrates one example for short BSR;
[0041] FIG. 2 illustrates an example wireless network, according to
certain embodiments;
[0042] FIG. 3 illustrates an example network node, according to
certain embodiments;
[0043] FIG. 4 illustrates an example wireless device, according to
certain embodiments;
[0044] FIG. 5 illustrate an example user equipment, according to
certain embodiments;
[0045] FIG. 6 illustrates a virtualization environment in which
functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized,
according to certain embodiments;
[0046] FIG. 7 illustrates a telecommunication network connected via
an intermediate network to a host computer, according to certain
embodiments;
[0047] FIG. 8 illustrates a generalized block diagram of a host
computer communicating via a base station with a user equipment
over a partially wireless connection, according to certain
embodiments;
[0048] FIG. 9 illustrates a method implemented in a communication
system, according to one embodiment;
[0049] FIG. 10 illustrates another method implemented in a
communication system, according to one embodiment;
[0050] FIG. 11 illustrates another method implemented in a
communication system, according to one embodiment;
[0051] FIG. 12 illustrates another method implemented in a
communication system, according to one embodiment;
[0052] FIG. 13 illustrates an example method by a wireless device,
according to certain embodiments;
[0053] FIG. 14 illustrates an exemplary virtual computing device,
according to certain embodiments;
[0054] FIG. 15 illustrates another example method by a wireless
device, according to certain embodiments;
[0055] FIG. 16 illustrates another exemplary virtual computing
device, according to certain embodiments;
[0056] FIG. 17 illustrates an example method by a network node,
according to certain embodiments;
[0057] FIG. 18 illustrates another exemplary virtual computing
device, according to certain embodiments;
[0058] FIG. 19 illustrates another example method by a network
node, according to certain embodiments; and
[0059] FIG. 20 illustrates another exemplary virtual computing
device, according to certain embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0060] Some of the embodiments contemplated herein will now be
described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Other embodiments, however, are contained within the scope of the
subject matter disclosed herein, the disclosed subject matter
should not be construed as limited to only the embodiments set
forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of
example to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled
in the art.
[0061] Generally, all terms used herein are to be interpreted
according to their ordinary meaning in the relevant technical
field, unless a different meaning is clearly given and/or is
implied from the context in which it is used. All references to
a/an/the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc. are to be
interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of the
element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc., unless explicitly
stated otherwise. The steps of any methods disclosed herein do not
have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless a step is
explicitly described as following or preceding another step and/or
where it is implicit that a step must follow or precede another
step. Any feature of any of the embodiments disclosed herein may be
applied to any other embodiment, wherever appropriate. Likewise,
any advantage of any of the embodiments may apply to any other
embodiments, and vice versa. Other objectives, features and
advantages of the enclosed embodiments will be apparent from the
following description.
[0062] In some embodiments, a more general term "network node" may
be used and may correspond to any type of radio network node or any
network node, which communicates with a UE (directly or via another
node) and/or with another network node. Examples of network nodes
are NodeB, MeNB, ENB, a network node belonging to MCG or SCG, base
station (BS), multi-standard radio (MSR) radio node such as MSR BS,
eNodeB, gNodeB, network controller, radio network controller (RNC),
base station controller (BSC), relay, donor node controlling relay,
base transceiver station (BTS), access point (AP), transmission
points, transmission nodes, RRU, RRH, nodes in distributed antenna
system (DAS), core network node (e.g. MSC, MME, etc), O&M, OSS,
SON, positioning node (e.g. E-SMLC), MDT, test equipment (physical
node or software), etc.
[0063] In some embodiments, the non-limiting term user equipment
(UE) or wireless device may be used and may refer to any type of
wireless device communicating with a network node and/or with
another UE in a cellular or mobile communication system. Examples
of UE are target device, device to device (D2D) UE, machine type UE
or UE capable of machine to machine (M2M) communication, PDA, PAD,
Tablet, mobile terminals, smart phone, laptop embedded equipped
(LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles, UE category M1,
UE category M2, ProSe UE, V2V UE, V2X UE, etc.
[0064] Additionally, terminologies such as base station/gNodeB and
UE should be considered non-limiting and do in particular not imply
a certain hierarchical relation between the two; in general,
"gNodeB" could be considered as device 1 and "UE" could be
considered as device 2 and these two devices communicate with each
other over some radio channel. And in the following the transmitter
or receiver could be either gNB, or UE.
[0065] According to certain embodiments disclosed herein, a method
is provided that enables the MAC multiplexing/prioritization
procedures to better support the transmission of critical traffic
(e.g. high priority URLLC traffic) by allowing the priority of MAC
CEs associated with such traffic to be temporarily/permanently
increased, thereby allowing timely transmission of MAC CE BSRs
containing information for LCGs (i.e. supporting critical and
non-critical traffic) for which traffic is available. This allows
the network to more quickly become aware of when a UE has traffic
available for non-critical LCHs (in addition to any new traffic
that has become available for critical LCHs) and adjust resource
assignments for that UE accordingly.
[0066] This is realized by constructing several MAC CE BSRs (e.g.,
critical BSR and normal BSR, or more) wherein each points
to/reports the status of one or more LCGs. This then allows for
temporarily increasing the priority of a single or multiple normal
BSRs, depending on (a) expiration of a specific timer used to
monitor how long the transmission of a BSR has been deferred or how
many consecutive MAC PDUs have been transmitted where LCP has
decided to exclude that BSR and (b) the availability of free space
in the MAC PDU. Also, the proposed solution enables the triggering
of SR if both normal and critical BSRs are failed to be triggered
and transmitted.
[0067] Some BSR triggering issues in the specification are first
considered. For example, a regular BSR can be triggered for a
logical channel (LCH) if none of the other LCHs, which are in the
same logical channel group (LCG) as this logical channel, contains
any available uplink (UL) data. To assure this behaviour, some text
changes to 3GPP TS 38.321 are suggested below with the revisions
emphasized in underlining: [0068] . . . the MAC entity has new UL
data available for a logical channel which belongs to an LCG; and
either [0069] 3. the new UL data belongs to a logical channel with
higher priority than the priority of any logical channel containing
available UL data which belong to any LCG; [0070] 4. none of the
logical channels which belong to that LCG contains any available UL
data . . . .
[0071] According to certain first embodiments, the problem of a
triggered BSR MAC CE not being transmitted is tackled. The reason
for the BSR MAC CE not being triggered may be 1) limited MAC PDU
size, 2) higher priority of critical LCH in compared to N-BSR.
However, certain embodiments are proposed.
[0072] For example, according to certain embodiments, multiple BSR
MAC CEs are defined. As a non-limiting example that is used
throughout this disclosure, it may be assumed that two BSR MAC CEs
are defined. Specifically, for example, a critical-B SR may be
considered to be a BSR of a C type (BSR C) and may be defined as
having high priority. By contrast a normal-BSR may be considered to
be a BSR of a N type (BSR N) and may be defined as having low
priority. The BSR N may be considered the legacy BSR. As used
herein, the term "Regular BSR" is used when direct changes to the
standard 3GPP TS 38.321 may be implemented, whereas the terms "BSR
N," or "BSR C" are used to explain the proposed methodology.
[0073] According to a particular embodiment, each BSR is associated
with one or a set of LCG.
[0074] According to a particular embodiment, a priority for each
BSR may be assigned. Each priority may be smaller than or higher
than that of critical LCH. In one particular embodiment, for
example, the BSR C may have a higher priority than that of BSR
N.
[0075] According to certain embodiments, a BSR migration timer may
be introduced for BSR N. Upon the expiry of the BSR migration timer
(and the BSR N where not transmitted), the priority of BSR N may be
increased to that of BSR C if, for example, no BSR C has been
triggered at this same time. According to a particular embodiment,
the BSR migration timer may be cancelled (if running) upon the
migration of BSR N to BSR C or the transmission of BSR C via the
MAC PDU.
[0076] According to another alternative embodiment, if SR is
triggered by BSR N, the UE may choose to cancel the BSR migration
timer.
[0077] According to certain embodiments, a data-size threshold is
introduced. For example, if the buffered data size on the LCGs
associated with the BSR N is larger than the data-size threshold,
the priority of the BSR N may be increased to that of BSR C, given
no BSR C has been triggered at the same time.
[0078] According to certain embodiments, a time-delay threshold may
be introduced to trigger the associated BSR to the LCG if the
buffered data has been waiting for longer than this threshold.
[0079] The above described embodiments impact the dynamic priority
message in radio resource control (RRC), with the following as an
example:
TABLE-US-00002 MAC-DynamicPrioConfig ::= SEQUENCE {
CRNTICE_or_ULCCCH_IND INTEGER CGCE_IND INTEGER, C-BSRCE_IND
INTEGER, N-BSRCE_IND INTEGER, PHRCE_IND INTEGER, SIDEBSRCE_IND
INTEGER, C-LCH1_IND INTEGER, C-LCH2_IND INTEGER, . . . LCHN_IND
INTEGER, BRQ_IND INTEGER, PADDBSRCE_IND INTEGER, }
Migration-NBSR-Timer ::= ENUMERATED { s1, sf5, sf10, sf16, sf20 . .
. . }
[0080] An example is provided to explain the first technique
described above. If the critical LCH priority exceeds that of a MAC
CE BSR priority, in order to avoid missing the transmission of BSR
while not destroying the determinism of critical LCHs, the
following steps may be applied: [0081] Critical LCHs may be split
into two LCHs: [0082] 1) critical LCH that cannot tolerate extra
waiting delay at the MAC LCH buffer, called C-LCH1, [0083] 2)
critical LCH that can tolerate to wait in MAC LCH buffer for 1 (or
x) more slot, called C-LCH2. [0084] Priority, p, may be assigned to
C-LCH1 (in this example p=3) and priority p+2 to C-LCH2 (e.g.,
p+2=5). [0085] The original BSR may be split into at least two
types of BSRs, i.e., critical BSR (BSR C) and non-critical BSRs
(BSR N). [0086] BSR C is used for reporting only 1 LCG buffer size
and has the priority p+1=4. [0087] BSR N is used for reporting all
LCGs buffer size, and has priority p+3=6; [0088] If LCHs with lower
priority than the transmitted critical LCH have been waiting in the
MAC LCH buffer for more than Migration-BSR-Timer, the associated
BSR N will be migrated to BSR C, hence has priority 4. gNB might
configure the Migration-BSR-Timer for each BSRN for each LCG using
RRC signaling.
[0089] According to a particular embodiment, an example of the new
logical channel prioritization order may be: [0090] 1. C-RNTI MAC
CE or data from UL-CCCH; [0091] 2. Configured Grant Confirmation
MAC CE; [0092] 3. Data for critical Logical channel (C-LCH1) (with
extremely tight latency budget). [0093] 4. MAC CE for critical BSR
(BSR C). [0094] 5. Data for critical Logical channel (C-LCH2) (with
tight latency budget but tolerate waiting for N more slots). [0095]
6. MAC CE for non-critical BSR (BSR N); [0096] 7. Single Entry PHR
MAC CE or Multiple Entry PHR MAC CE; [0097] 8. data from any
Logical Channel, except data from UL-CCCH; [0098] 9. MAC CE for
Recommended bit rate query; [0099] 10. MAC CE for BSR included for
padding.
[0100] According to certain embodiments, the first technique
described above, which relates to multiple BSR MAC CEs being
defined, may be further clarified. For example, to trigger the
waiting LCG BSR, a measurement indicator, Si, is proposed to point
to the buffer size of that LCGi and compare it to a threshold
"NBSR-Threshold". If Si>NBSR-Threshold then associated BSR N
and/or SR associated with LCGi is triggered even if it is lower
than the existed LCH transmission. The triggering of such BSR N
occurs either by fitting in the MAC PDU, if it fits in it, or by
evolving the BSR N to BSR C.
[0101] These procedures impact the BSR-Config message in the RRC.
As an example, the changes for the case of only two BSRs (BSR C for
critical traffic and BSR N for conventional traffic) is reflected
below (with the changes underlined) in the following change in the
BSR-Config message:
TABLE-US-00003 BSR-Config ::= SEQUENCE { periodicCBSR-Timer
ENUMERATED { sf5, sf10, sf16, sf20, sf32, sf40, sf64, sf80, sf128,
sf160, sf320, sf640, sf1280, sf2560, infinity } periodicNBSR-Timer
ENUMERATED { sf5, sf10, sf16, sf20, sf32, sf40, sf64, sf80, sf128,
sf160, sf320, sf640, sf1280, sf2560, infinity }, retxC-BSR-Timer
ENUMERATED { sf10, sf20, sf40, sf80, sf160, sf320, sf640, sf1280,
sf2560, sf5120, sf10240, spare5, spare4, spare3, spare2, spare1 },
retxNBSR-Timer ENUMERATED { sf20, sf40, sf80, sf160, sf320, sf640,
sf1280, sf2560, sf5120, sf10240, spare5, spare4, spare3, spare2,
spare1 }, NBSR-Threshold ENUMERATED { 50, 10, 150 . . . }
CBSR-Threshold ENUMERATED { 50, 10, 150 . . . }
logicalChannelSR-DelayTimer ENUMERATED { sf20, sf40, sf64, sf128,
sf512, sf1024, sf2560, spare1 } OPTIONAL, -- Need R . . . }
[0102] According to certain embodiments, if BSR N is overridden by
BSR C or C-LCH, after being triggered by a retxNBSR-Timer, it
should remain triggered/expired till next opportunity. If BSR N was
overridden by BSR C or C-LCH, after being triggered by a
periodicNBSR-Timer, it proposed to Initiate a retxNBSR-Timer to be
expire by next opportunity.
[0103] According to certain embodiments, a New MAC CE field is
needed for BSR MAC CE. FIG. 1 illustrates one example 50 for short
BSR. Specifically, a BSR ID is added to the short BSR and truncated
BSR MAC CE.
[0104] According to certain embodiments, an additional set of
embodiments is provided as alternative for the second technique
proposed above, which relates to the introduction of a BSR
migration timer for BSR N. The additional embodiments tackle the
problem of constantly down-prioritizing the BSR, as may be realized
by the first technique proposed above, which introduces the
multiple BSR MAC CEs. Specifically, the additional embodiments
allow transmission of scheduling request (SR) instead of BSR. For
example, after a migration time, in which a triggered BSR is not
transmitted, SR transmission may be triggered, i.e. BSR is migrated
to SR. The migration time may be configured to zero, i.e.
immediately trigger SR if BSR cannot be sent. An example standard
implementation is provided below:
[0105] High priority data is transmitted, e.g. on pre-scheduled
dynamic UL grants every TTI, low priority BSR for e.g. eMBB data
does not fit into this grant. The assumption is that gNB can never
provide extra resources to fit the low priority BSR.
[0106] In this case, in order to not down-prioritize the
high-priority data transmission i.e. to maintain determinism of
this transmission, the BSR is not prioritized, but an SR is sent
instead according to the below:
[0107] The MAC entity shall: [0108] 1> if the Buffer Status
reporting procedure determines that at least one BSR has been
triggered and not cancelled: [0109] 2> if UL-SCH resources are
available for a new transmission: [0110] 3> instruct the
Multiplexing and Assembly procedure to generate the BSR MAC CE(s);
[0111] 3> start or restart periodicBSR-Timer except when all the
generated BSRs are long or short Truncated BSRs; [0112] 3> start
or restart retxBSR-Timer. [0113] 2> if a Regular BSR has been
triggered and logicalChannelSR-DelayTimer is not running: [0114]
3> if there is no UL-SCH resource available for a new
transmission; or [0115] 3> if the MAC entity is configured with
configured uplink grant(s) and the Regular BSR was not triggered
for a logical channel for which logical channel SR masking
(logicalChannelSR-Mask) is setup by upper layers; or [0116] 3>
if the UL-SCH resources available for a new transmission do not
meet the LCP mapping restrictions (see subclause 5.4.3.1)
configured for the logical channel(s) that triggered the BSR(s),
or; [0117] 3> if the UL-SCH resources available for a new
transmission do not fit the MAC CE for the triggered BSR (for the
case that BSR MAC CE is deprioritized compared to other UL data):
[0118] 4> trigger a Scheduling Request.
[0119] In an extension of the embodiment above, the SR triggering
in case of available UL resources not fitting the triggered BSR
(which is down-prioritized) is also applicable to periodic BSR, in
a particular embodiment.
[0120] Note that the above example is directed changes to the
standard 3GPP TS 38.321. As such, and as explained above, the term
"Regular BSR" may be used instead of the terms "BSR N" or "BSR
C."
[0121] FIG. 2 illustrates a wireless network, in accordance with
some embodiments. Although the subject matter described herein may
be implemented in any appropriate type of system using any suitable
components, the embodiments disclosed herein are described in
relation to a wireless network, such as the example wireless
network illustrated in FIG. 2. For simplicity, the wireless network
of FIG. 2 only depicts network 106, network nodes 160 and 160b, and
wireless devices 110. In practice, a wireless network may further
include any additional elements suitable to support communication
between wireless devices or between a wireless device and another
communication device, such as a landline telephone, a service
provider, or any other network node or end device. Of the
illustrated components, network node 160 and wireless device
wireless device 110 are depicted with additional detail. The
wireless network may provide communication and other types of
services to one or more wireless devices to facilitate the wireless
devices' access to and/or use of the services provided by, or via,
the wireless network.
[0122] The wireless network may comprise and/or interface with any
type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, and/or
radio network or other similar type of system. In some embodiments,
the wireless network may be configured to operate according to
specific standards or other types of predefined rules or
procedures. Thus, particular embodiments of the wireless network
may implement communication standards, such as Global System for
Mobile Communications (GSM), Universal Mobile Telecommunications
System (UMTS), Long Term Evolution (LTE), and/or other suitable 2G,
3G, 4G, or 5G standards; wireless local area network (WLAN)
standards, such as the IEEE 802.11 standards; and/or any other
appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide
Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave
and/or ZigBee standards.
[0123] Network 106 may comprise one or more backhaul networks, core
networks, IP networks, public switched telephone networks (PSTNs),
packet data networks, optical networks, wide-area networks (WANs),
local area networks (LANs), wireless local area networks (WLANs),
wired networks, wireless networks, metropolitan area networks, and
other networks to enable communication between devices.
[0124] Network node 160 and wireless device 110 comprise various
components described in more detail below. These components work
together in order to provide network node and/or wireless device
functionality, such as providing wireless connections in a wireless
network. In different embodiments, the wireless network may
comprise any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes,
base stations, controllers, wireless devices, relay stations,
and/or any other components or systems that may facilitate or
participate in the communication of data and/or signals whether via
wired or wireless connections.
[0125] FIG. 3 illustrates an example network node 160, according to
certain embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to
equipment capable, configured, arranged and/or operable to
communicate directly or indirectly with a wireless device and/or
with other network nodes or equipment in the wireless network to
enable and/or provide wireless access to the wireless device and/or
to perform other functions (e.g., administration) in the wireless
network. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to,
access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points), base stations
(BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs)
and NR NodeBs (gNBs)). Base stations may be categorized based on
the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their
transmit power level) and may then also be referred to as femto
base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro
base stations. A base station may be a relay node or a relay donor
node controlling a relay. A network node may also include one or
more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station such as
centralized digital units and/or remote radio units (RRUs),
sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such remote
radio units may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an
antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio base station
may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system
(DAS). Yet further examples of network nodes include multi-standard
radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as
radio network controllers (RNCs) or base station controllers
(BSCs), base transceiver stations (BTSs), transmission points,
transmission nodes, multi-cell/multicast coordination entities
(MCEs), core network nodes (e.g., MSCs, MMEs), O&M nodes, OSS
nodes, SON nodes, positioning nodes (e.g., E-SMLCs), and/or MDTs.
As another example, a network node may be a virtual network node as
described in more detail below. More generally, however, network
nodes may represent any suitable device (or group of devices)
capable, configured, arranged, and/or operable to enable and/or
provide a wireless device with access to the wireless network or to
provide some service to a wireless device that has accessed the
wireless network.
[0126] In FIG. 3, network node 160 includes processing circuitry
170, device readable medium 180, interface 190, auxiliary equipment
184, power source 186, power circuitry 187, and antenna 162.
Although network node 160 illustrated in the example wireless
network of FIG. 3 may represent a device that includes the
illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments
may comprise network nodes with different combinations of
components. It is to be understood that a network node comprises
any suitable combination of hardware and/or software needed to
perform the tasks, features, functions and methods disclosed
herein. Moreover, while the components of network node 160 are
depicted as single boxes located within a larger box, or nested
within multiple boxes, in practice, a network node may comprise
multiple different physical components that make up a single
illustrated component (e.g., device readable medium 180 may
comprise multiple separate hard drives as well as multiple RAM
modules).
[0127] Similarly, network node 160 may be composed of multiple
physically separate components (e.g., a NodeB component and a RNC
component, or a BTS component and a BSC component, etc.), which may
each have their own respective components. In certain scenarios in
which network node 160 comprises multiple separate components
(e.g., BTS and BSC components), one or more of the separate
components may be shared among several network nodes. For example,
a single RNC may control multiple NodeB's. In such a scenario, each
unique NodeB and RNC pair, may in some instances be considered a
single separate network node. In some embodiments, network node 160
may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies
(RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated
(e.g., separate device readable medium 180 for the different RATs)
and some components may be reused (e.g., the same antenna 162 may
be shared by the RATs). Network node 160 may also include multiple
sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless
technologies integrated into network node 160, such as, for
example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, or Bluetooth wireless
technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into
the same or different chip or set of chips and other components
within network node 160.
[0128] Processing circuitry 170 is configured to perform any
determining, calculating, or similar operations (e.g., certain
obtaining operations) described herein as being provided by a
network node. These operations performed by processing circuitry
170 may include processing information obtained by processing
circuitry 170 by, for example, converting the obtained information
into other information, comparing the obtained information or
converted information to information stored in the network node,
and/or performing one or more operations based on the obtained
information or converted information, and as a result of said
processing making a determination.
[0129] Processing circuitry 170 may comprise a combination of one
or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central
processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific
integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other
suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware,
software and/or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or
in conjunction with other network node 160 components, such as
device readable medium 180, network node 160 functionality. For
example, processing circuitry 170 may execute instructions stored
in device readable medium 180 or in memory within processing
circuitry 170. Such functionality may include providing any of the
various wireless features, functions, or benefits discussed herein.
In some embodiments, processing circuitry 170 may include a system
on a chip (SOC).
[0130] In some embodiments, processing circuitry 170 may include
one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 172 and
baseband processing circuitry 174. In some embodiments, radio
frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 172 and baseband processing
circuitry 174 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards,
or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative
embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry 172 and
baseband processing circuitry 174 may be on the same chip or set of
chips, boards, or units.
[0131] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality
described herein as being provided by a network node, base station,
eNB or other such network device may be performed by processing
circuitry 170 executing instructions stored on device readable
medium 180 or memory within processing circuitry 170. In
alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be
provided by processing circuitry 170 without executing instructions
stored on a separate or discrete device readable medium, such as in
a hard-wired manner. In any of those embodiments, whether executing
instructions stored on a device readable storage medium or not,
processing circuitry 170 can be configured to perform the described
functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not
limited to processing circuitry 170 alone or to other components of
network node 160 but are enjoyed by network node 160 as a whole,
and/or by end users and the wireless network generally.
[0132] Device readable medium 180 may comprise any form of volatile
or non-volatile computer readable memory including, without
limitation, persistent storage, solid-state memory, remotely
mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory
(RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (for example, a
hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a
Compact Disk (CD) or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and/or any other
volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device readable and/or
computer-executable memory devices that store information, data,
and/or instructions that may be used by processing circuitry 170.
Device readable medium 180 may store any suitable instructions,
data or information, including a computer program, software, an
application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables,
etc. and/or other instructions capable of being executed by
processing circuitry 170 and, utilized by network node 160. Device
readable medium 180 may be used to store any calculations made by
processing circuitry 170 and/or any data received via interface
190. In some embodiments, processing circuitry 170 and device
readable medium 180 may be considered to be integrated.
[0133] Interface 190 is used in the wired or wireless communication
of signalling and/or data between network node 160, network 106,
and/or wireless devices 110. As illustrated, interface 190
comprises port(s)/terminal(s) 194 to send and receive data, for
example to and from network 106 over a wired connection. Interface
190 also includes radio front end circuitry 192 that may be coupled
to, or in certain embodiments a part of, antenna 162. Radio front
end circuitry 192 comprises filters 198 and amplifiers 196. Radio
front end circuitry 192 may be connected to antenna 162 and
processing circuitry 170. Radio front end circuitry may be
configured to condition signals communicated between antenna 162
and processing circuitry 170. Radio front end circuitry 192 may
receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes
or wireless devices via a wireless connection. Radio front end
circuitry 192 may convert the digital data into a radio signal
having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a
combination of filters 198 and/or amplifiers 196. The radio signal
may then be transmitted via antenna 162. Similarly, when receiving
data, antenna 162 may collect radio signals which are then
converted into digital data by radio front end circuitry 192. The
digital data may be passed to processing circuitry 170. In other
embodiments, the interface may comprise different components and/or
different combinations of components.
[0134] In certain alternative embodiments, network node 160 may not
include separate radio front end circuitry 192, instead, processing
circuitry 170 may comprise radio front end circuitry and may be
connected to antenna 162 without separate radio front end circuitry
192. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of RF transceiver
circuitry 172 may be considered a part of interface 190. In still
other embodiments, interface 190 may include one or more ports or
terminals 194, radio front end circuitry 192, and RF transceiver
circuitry 172, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and interface
190 may communicate with baseband processing circuitry 174, which
is part of a digital unit (not shown).
[0135] Antenna 162 may include one or more antennas, or antenna
arrays, configured to send and/or receive wireless signals. Antenna
162 may be coupled to radio front end circuitry 190 and may be any
type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and/or
signals wirelessly. In some embodiments, antenna 162 may comprise
one or more omni-directional, sector or panel antennas operable to
transmit/receive radio signals between, for example, 2 GHz and 66
GHz. An omni-directional antenna may be used to transmit/receive
radio signals in any direction, a sector antenna may be used to
transmit/receive radio signals from devices within a particular
area, and a panel antenna may be a line of sight antenna used to
transmit/receive radio signals in a relatively straight line. In
some instances, the use of more than one antenna may be referred to
as MIMO. In certain embodiments, antenna 162 may be separate from
network node 160 and may be connectable to network node 160 through
an interface or port.
[0136] Antenna 162, interface 190, and/or processing circuitry 170
may be configured to perform any receiving operations and/or
certain obtaining operations described herein as being performed by
a network node. Any information, data and/or signals may be
received from a wireless device, another network node and/or any
other network equipment. Similarly, antenna 162, interface 190,
and/or processing circuitry 170 may be configured to perform any
transmitting operations described herein as being performed by a
network node. Any information, data and/or signals may be
transmitted to a wireless device, another network node and/or any
other network equipment.
[0137] Power circuitry 187 may comprise, or be coupled to, power
management circuitry and is configured to supply the components of
network node 160 with power for performing the functionality
described herein. Power circuitry 187 may receive power from power
source 186. Power source 186 and/or power circuitry 187 may be
configured to provide power to the various components of network
node 160 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at
a voltage and current level needed for each respective component).
Power source 186 may either be included in, or external to, power
circuitry 187 and/or network node 160. For example, network node
160 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., an
electricity outlet) via an input circuitry or interface such as an
electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power
to power circuitry 187. As a further example, power source 186 may
comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack
which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry 187. The
battery may provide backup power should the external power source
fail. Other types of power sources, such as photovoltaic devices,
may also be used.
[0138] Alternative embodiments of network node 160 may include
additional components beyond those shown in FIG. 3 that may be
responsible for providing certain aspects of the network node's
functionality, including any of the functionality described herein
and/or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter
described herein. For example, network node 160 may include user
interface equipment to allow input of information into network node
160 and to allow output of information from network node 160. This
may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and
other administrative functions for network node 160.
[0139] FIG. 4 illustrates an example wireless device 110, according
to certain embodiments. As used herein, wireless device refers to a
device capable, configured, arranged and/or operable to communicate
wirelessly with network nodes and/or other wireless devices. Unless
otherwise noted, the term wireless device may be used
interchangeably herein with user equipment (UE). Communicating
wirelessly may involve transmitting and/or receiving wireless
signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves,
and/or other types of signals suitable for conveying information
through air. In some embodiments, a wireless device may be
configured to transmit and/or receive information without direct
human interaction. For instance, a wireless device may be designed
to transmit information to a network on a predetermined schedule,
when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to
requests from the network. Examples of a wireless device include,
but are not limited to, a smart phone, a mobile phone, a cell
phone, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a wireless local loop phone, a
desktop computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless
cameras, a gaming console or device, a music storage device, a
playback appliance, a wearable terminal device, a wireless
endpoint, a mobile station, a tablet, a laptop, a laptop-embedded
equipment (LEE), a laptop-mounted equipment (LME), a smart device,
a wireless customer-premise equipment (CPE). a vehicle-mounted
wireless terminal device, etc. A wireless device may support
device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a
3GPP standard for sidelink communication, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V),
vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) and
may in this case be referred to as a D2D communication device. As
yet another specific example, in an Internet of Things (IoT)
scenario, a wireless device may represent a machine or other device
that performs monitoring and/or measurements and transmits the
results of such monitoring and/or measurements to another wireless
device and/or a network node. The wireless device may in this case
be a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, which may in a 3GPP context
be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, the
wireless device may be a UE implementing the 3GPP narrow band
internet of things (NB-IoT) standard. Particular examples of such
machines or devices are sensors, metering devices such as power
meters, industrial machinery, or home or personal appliances (e.g.
refrigerators, televisions, etc.) personal wearables (e.g.,
watches, fitness trackers, etc.). In other scenarios, a wireless
device may represent a vehicle or other equipment that is capable
of monitoring and/or reporting on its operational status or other
functions associated with its operation. A wireless device as
described above may represent the endpoint of a wireless
connection, in which case the device may be referred to as a
wireless terminal. Furthermore, a wireless device as described
above may be mobile, in which case it may also be referred to as a
mobile device or a mobile terminal.
[0140] As illustrated, wireless device 110 includes antenna 111,
interface 114, processing circuitry 120, device readable medium
130, user interface equipment 132, auxiliary equipment 134, power
source 136 and power circuitry 137. wireless device 110 may include
multiple sets of one or more of the illustrated components for
different wireless technologies supported by wireless device 110,
such as, for example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, WiMAX, or
Bluetooth wireless technologies, just to mention a few. These
wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different
chips or set of chips as other components within wireless device
110.
[0141] Antenna 111 may include one or more antennas or antenna
arrays, configured to send and/or receive wireless signals, and is
connected to interface 114. In certain alternative embodiments,
antenna 111 may be separate from wireless device 110 and be
connectable to wireless device 110 through an interface or port.
Antenna 111, interface 114, and/or processing circuitry 120 may be
configured to perform any receiving or transmitting operations
described herein as being performed by a wireless device. Any
information, data and/or signals may be received from a network
node and/or another wireless device. In some embodiments, radio
front end circuitry and/or antenna 111 may be considered an
interface.
[0142] As illustrated, interface 114 comprises radio front end
circuitry 112 and antenna 111. Radio front end circuitry 112
comprise one or more filters 118 and amplifiers 116. Radio front
end circuitry 114 is connected to antenna 111 and processing
circuitry 120 and is configured to condition signals communicated
between antenna 111 and processing circuitry 120. Radio front end
circuitry 112 may be coupled to or a part of antenna 111. In some
embodiments, wireless device 110 may not include separate radio
front end circuitry 112; rather, processing circuitry 120 may
comprise radio front end circuitry and may be connected to antenna
111. Similarly, in some embodiments, some or all of RF transceiver
circuitry 122 may be considered a part of interface 114. Radio
front end circuitry 112 may receive digital data that is to be sent
out to other network nodes or wireless devices via a wireless
connection. Radio front end circuitry 112 may convert the digital
data into a radio signal having the appropriate channel and
bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 118 and/or
amplifiers 116. The radio signal may then be transmitted via
antenna 111. Similarly, when receiving data, antenna 111 may
collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by
radio front end circuitry 112. The digital data may be passed to
processing circuitry 120. In other embodiments, the interface may
comprise different components and/or different combinations of
components.
[0143] Processing circuitry 120 may comprise a combination of one
or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central
processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific
integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other
suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware,
software, and/or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or
in conjunction with other wireless device 110 components, such as
device readable medium 130, wireless device 110 functionality. Such
functionality may include providing any of the various wireless
features or benefits discussed herein. For example, processing
circuitry 120 may execute instructions stored in device readable
medium 130 or in memory within processing circuitry 120 to provide
the functionality disclosed herein.
[0144] As illustrated, processing circuitry 120 includes one or
more of RF transceiver circuitry 122, baseband processing circuitry
124, and application processing circuitry 126. In other
embodiments, the processing circuitry may comprise different
components and/or different combinations of components. In certain
embodiments processing circuitry 120 of wireless device 110 may
comprise a SOC. In some embodiments, RF transceiver circuitry 122,
baseband processing circuitry 124, and application processing
circuitry 126 may be on separate chips or sets of chips. In
alternative embodiments, part or all of baseband processing
circuitry 124 and application processing circuitry 126 may be
combined into one chip or set of chips, and RF transceiver
circuitry 122 may be on a separate chip or set of chips. In still
alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry
122 and baseband processing circuitry 124 may be on the same chip
or set of chips, and application processing circuitry 126 may be on
a separate chip or set of chips. In yet other alternative
embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry 122, baseband
processing circuitry 124, and application processing circuitry 126
may be combined in the same chip or set of chips. In some
embodiments, RF transceiver circuitry 122 may be a part of
interface 114. RF transceiver circuitry 122 may condition RF
signals for processing circuitry 120.
[0145] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality
described herein as being performed by a wireless device may be
provided by processing circuitry 120 executing instructions stored
on device readable medium 130, which in certain embodiments may be
a computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments,
some or all of the functionality may be provided by processing
circuitry 120 without executing instructions stored on a separate
or discrete device readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired
manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing
instructions stored on a device readable storage medium or not,
processing circuitry 120 can be configured to perform the described
functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not
limited to processing circuitry 120 alone or to other components of
wireless device 110, but are enjoyed by wireless device 110 as a
whole, and/or by end users and the wireless network generally.
[0146] Processing circuitry 120 may be configured to perform any
determining, calculating, or similar operations (e.g., certain
obtaining operations) described herein as being performed by a
wireless device. These operations, as performed by processing
circuitry 120, may include processing information obtained by
processing circuitry 120 by, for example, converting the obtained
information into other information, comparing the obtained
information or converted information to information stored by
wireless device 110, and/or performing one or more operations based
on the obtained information or converted information, and as a
result of said processing making a determination.
[0147] Device readable medium 130 may be operable to store a
computer program, software, an application including one or more of
logic, rules, code, tables, etc. and/or other instructions capable
of being executed by processing circuitry 120. Device readable
medium 130 may include computer memory (e.g., Random Access Memory
(RAM) or Read Only Memory (ROM)), mass storage media (e.g., a hard
disk), removable storage media (e.g., a Compact Disk (CD) or a
Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and/or any other volatile or
non-volatile, non-transitory device readable and/or computer
executable memory devices that store information, data, and/or
instructions that may be used by processing circuitry 120. In some
embodiments, processing circuitry 120 and device readable medium
130 may be considered to be integrated.
[0148] User interface equipment 132 may provide components that
allow for a human user to interact with wireless device 110. Such
interaction may be of many forms, such as visual, audial, tactile,
etc. User interface equipment 132 may be operable to produce output
to the user and to allow the user to provide input to wireless
device 110. The type of interaction may vary depending on the type
of user interface equipment 132 installed in wireless device 110.
For example, if wireless device 110 is a smart phone, the
interaction may be via a touch screen; if wireless device 110 is a
smart meter, the interaction may be through a screen that provides
usage (e.g., the number of gallons used) or a speaker that provides
an audible alert (e.g., if smoke is detected). User interface
equipment 132 may include input interfaces, devices and circuits,
and output interfaces, devices and circuits. User interface
equipment 132 is configured to allow input of information into
wireless device 110 and is connected to processing circuitry 120 to
allow processing circuitry 120 to process the input information.
User interface equipment 132 may include, for example, a
microphone, a proximity or other sensor, keys/buttons, a touch
display, one or more cameras, a USB port, or other input circuitry.
User interface equipment 132 is also configured to allow output of
information from wireless device 110, and to allow processing
circuitry 120 to output information from wireless device 110. User
interface equipment 132 may include, for example, a speaker, a
display, vibrating circuitry, a USB port, a headphone interface, or
other output circuitry. Using one or more input and output
interfaces, devices, and circuits, of user interface equipment 132,
wireless device 110 may communicate with end users and/or the
wireless network and allow them to benefit from the functionality
described herein.
[0149] Auxiliary equipment 134 is operable to provide more specific
functionality which may not be generally performed by wireless
devices. This may comprise specialized sensors for doing
measurements for various purposes, interfaces for additional types
of communication such as wired communications etc. The inclusion
and type of components of auxiliary equipment 134 may vary
depending on the embodiment and/or scenario.
[0150] Power source 136 may, in some embodiments, be in the form of
a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an
external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic
devices or power cells, may also be used. wireless device 110 may
further comprise power circuitry 137 for delivering power from
power source 136 to the various parts of wireless device 110 which
need power from power source 136 to carry out any functionality
described or indicated herein. Power circuitry 137 may in certain
embodiments comprise power management circuitry. Power circuitry
137 may additionally or alternatively be operable to receive power
from an external power source; in which case wireless device 110
may be connectable to the external power source (such as an
electricity outlet) via input circuitry or an interface such as an
electrical power cable. Power circuitry 137 may also in certain
embodiments be operable to deliver power from an external power
source to power source 136. This may be, for example, for the
charging of power source 136. Power circuitry 137 may perform any
formatting, converting, or other modification to the power from
power source 136 to make the power suitable for the respective
components of wireless device 110 to which power is supplied.
[0151] FIG. 5 illustrates one embodiment of a UE 200 in accordance
with various aspects described herein. As used herein, a user
equipment or UE may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a
human user who owns and/or operates the relevant device. Instead, a
UE may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or
operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not
initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart
sprinkler controller). Alternatively, a UE may represent a device
that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but
which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user
(e.g., a smart power meter). UE 2200 may be any UE identified by
the 3.sup.rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including a
NB-IoT UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and/or an
enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE. UE 200, as illustrated in FIG. 5, is one
example of a wireless device configured for communication in
accordance with one or more communication standards promulgated by
the 3.sup.rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), such as 3GPP's
GSM, UMTS, LTE, and/or 5G standards. As mentioned previously, the
term wireless device and UE may be used interchangeable.
Accordingly, although FIG. 5 is a UE, the components discussed
herein are equally applicable to a wireless device, and
vice-versa.
[0152] In FIG. 5, UE 200 includes processing circuitry 201 that is
operatively coupled to input/output interface 205, radio frequency
(RF) interface 209, network connection interface 211, memory 215
including random access memory (RAM) 217, read-only memory (ROM)
219, and storage medium 221 or the like, communication subsystem
231, power source 233, and/or any other component, or any
combination thereof. Storage medium 221 includes operating system
223, application program 225, and data 227. In other embodiments,
storage medium 221 may include other similar types of information.
Certain UEs may utilize all of the components shown in FIG. 5, or
only a subset of the components. The level of integration between
the components may vary from one UE to another UE. Further, certain
UEs may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple
processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers,
etc.
[0153] In FIG. 5, processing circuitry 201 may be configured to
process computer instructions and data. Processing circuitry 201
may be configured to implement any sequential state machine
operative to execute machine instructions stored as
machine-readable computer programs in the memory, such as one or
more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic,
FPGA, ASIC, etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate
firmware; one or more stored program, general-purpose processors,
such as a microprocessor or Digital Signal Processor (DSP),
together with appropriate software; or any combination of the
above. For example, the processing circuitry 201 may include two
central processing units (CPUs). Data may be information in a form
suitable for use by a computer.
[0154] In the depicted embodiment, input/output interface 205 may
be configured to provide a communication interface to an input
device, output device, or input and output device. UE 200 may be
configured to use an output device via input/output interface 205.
An output device may use the same type of interface port as an
input device. For example, a USB port may be used to provide input
to and output from UE 200. The output device may be a speaker, a
sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an
actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any
combination thereof. UE 200 may be configured to use an input
device via input/output interface 205 to allow a user to capture
information into UE 200. The input device may include a
touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a
digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a
microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a
trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The
presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive
touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor may be, for
instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force
sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor,
another like sensor, or any combination thereof. For example, the
input device may be an accelerometer, a magnetometer, a digital
camera, a microphone, and an optical sensor.
[0155] In FIG. 5, RF interface 209 may be configured to provide a
communication interface to RF components such as a transmitter, a
receiver, and an antenna. Network connection interface 211 may be
configured to provide a communication interface to network 243a.
Network 243a may encompass wired and/or wireless networks such as a
local-area network (LAN), a wide-area network (WAN), a computer
network, a wireless network, a telecommunications network, another
like network or any combination thereof. For example, network 243a
may comprise a Wi-Fi network. Network connection interface 211 may
be configured to include a receiver and a transmitter interface
used to communicate with one or more other devices over a
communication network according to one or more communication
protocols, such as Ethernet, TCP/IP, SONET, ATM, or the like.
Network connection interface 211 may implement receiver and
transmitter functionality appropriate to the communication network
links (e.g., optical, electrical, and the like). The transmitter
and receiver functions may share circuit components, software or
firmware, or alternatively may be implemented separately.
[0156] RAM 217 may be configured to interface via bus 202 to
processing circuitry 201 to provide storage or caching of data or
computer instructions during the execution of software programs
such as the operating system, application programs, and device
drivers. ROM 219 may be configured to provide computer instructions
or data to processing circuitry 201. For example, ROM 219 may be
configured to store invariant low-level system code or data for
basic system functions such as basic input and output (I/O),
startup, or reception of keystrokes from a keyboard that are stored
in a non-volatile memory. Storage medium 221 may be configured to
include memory such as RAM, ROM, programmable read-only memory
(PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM),
electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM),
magnetic disks, optical disks, floppy disks, hard disks, removable
cartridges, or flash drives. In one example, storage medium 221 may
be configured to include operating system 223, application program
225 such as a web browser application, a widget or gadget engine or
another application, and data file 227. Storage medium 221 may
store, for use by UE 200, any of a variety of various operating
systems or combinations of operating systems.
[0157] Storage medium 221 may be configured to include a number of
physical drive units, such as redundant array of independent disks
(RAID), floppy disk drive, flash memory, USB flash drive, external
hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, high-density
digital versatile disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard
disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, holographic digital data
storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini-dual in-line
memory module (DIMM), synchronous dynamic random access memory
(SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as a
subscriber identity module or a removable user identity (SIM/RUIM)
module, other memory, or any combination thereof. Storage medium
221 may allow UE 200 to access computer-executable instructions,
application programs or the like, stored on transitory or
non-transitory memory media, to off-load data, or to upload data.
An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication
system may be tangibly embodied in storage medium 221, which may
comprise a device readable medium.
[0158] In FIG. 5, processing circuitry 201 may be configured to
communicate with network 243b using communication subsystem 231.
Network 243a and network 243b may be the same network or networks
or different network or networks. Communication subsystem 231 may
be configured to include one or more transceivers used to
communicate with network 243b. For example, communication subsystem
231 may be configured to include one or more transceivers used to
communicate with one or more remote transceivers of another device
capable of wireless communication such as another wireless device,
UE, or base station of a radio access network (RAN) according to
one or more communication protocols, such as IEEE 802.QQ2, CDMA,
WCDMA, GSM, LTE, UTRAN, WiMax, or the like. Each transceiver may
include transmitter 233 and/or receiver 235 to implement
transmitter or receiver functionality, respectively, appropriate to
the RAN links (e.g., frequency allocations and the like). Further,
transmitter 233 and receiver 235 of each transceiver may share
circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively may be
implemented separately.
[0159] In the illustrated embodiment, the communication functions
of communication subsystem 231 may include data communication,
voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range
communications such as Bluetooth, near-field communication,
location-based communication such as the use of the global
positioning system (GPS) to determine a location, another like
communication function, or any combination thereof. For example,
communication subsystem 231 may include cellular communication,
Wi-Fi communication, Bluetooth communication, and GPS
communication. Network 243b may encompass wired and/or wireless
networks such as a local-area network (LAN), a wide-area network
(WAN), a computer network, a wireless network, a telecommunications
network, another like network or any combination thereof. For
example, network 243b may be a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network,
and/or a near-field network. Power source 213 may be configured to
provide alternating current (AC) or direct current (DC) power to
components of UE 200.
[0160] The features, benefits and/or functions described herein may
be implemented in one of the components of UE 200 or partitioned
across multiple components of UE 200. Further, the features,
benefits, and/or functions described herein may be implemented in
any combination of hardware, software or firmware. In one example,
communication subsystem 231 may be configured to include any of the
components described herein. Further, processing circuitry 201 may
be configured to communicate with any of such components over bus
202. In another example, any of such components may be represented
by program instructions stored in memory that when executed by
processing circuitry 201 perform the corresponding functions
described herein. In another example, the functionality of any of
such components may be partitioned between processing circuitry 201
and communication subsystem 231. In another example, the
non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components
may be implemented in software or firmware and the computationally
intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.
[0161] FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a
virtualization environment 300 in which functions implemented by
some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context,
virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or
devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage
devices and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization
can be applied to a node (e.g., a virtualized base station or a
virtualized radio access node) or to a device (e.g., a UE, a
wireless device or any other type of communication device) or
components thereof and relates to an implementation in which at
least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more
virtual components (e.g., via one or more applications, components,
functions, virtual machines or containers executing on one or more
physical processing nodes in one or more networks).
[0162] In some embodiments, some or all of the functions described
herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or
more virtual machines implemented in one or more virtual
environments 300 hosted by one or more of hardware nodes 330.
Further, in embodiments in which the virtual node is not a radio
access node or does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core
network node), then the network node may be entirely
virtualized.
[0163] The functions may be implemented by one or more applications
320 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual
appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network
functions, etc.) operative to implement some of the features,
functions, and/or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed
herein. Applications 320 are run in virtualization environment 300
which provides hardware 330 comprising processing circuitry 360 and
memory 390. Memory 390 contains instructions 395 executable by
processing circuitry 360 whereby application 320 is operative to
provide one or more of the features, benefits, and/or functions
disclosed herein.
[0164] Virtualization environment 300, comprises general-purpose or
special-purpose network hardware devices 330 comprising a set of
one or more processors or processing circuitry 360, which may be
commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) processors, dedicated Application
Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), or any other type of
processing circuitry including digital or analog hardware
components or special purpose processors. Each hardware device may
comprise memory 390-1 which may be non-persistent memory for
temporarily storing instructions 395 or software executed by
processing circuitry 360. Each hardware device may comprise one or
more network interface controllers (NICs) 370, also known as
network interface cards, which include physical network interface
380. Each hardware device may also include non-transitory,
persistent, machine-readable storage media 390-2 having stored
therein software 395 and/or instructions executable by processing
circuitry 360. Software 395 may include any type of software
including software for instantiating one or more virtualization
layers 350 (also referred to as hypervisors), software to execute
virtual machines 340 as well as software allowing it to execute
functions, features and/or benefits described in relation with some
embodiments described herein.
[0165] Virtual machines 340, comprise virtual processing, virtual
memory, virtual networking or interface and virtual storage, and
may be run by a corresponding virtualization layer 350 or
hypervisor. Different embodiments of the instance of virtual
appliance 320 may be implemented on one or more of virtual machines
340, and the implementations may be made in different ways.
[0166] During operation, processing circuitry 360 executes software
395 to instantiate the hypervisor or virtualization layer 350,
which may sometimes be referred to as a virtual machine monitor
(VMM). Virtualization layer 350 may present a virtual operating
platform that appears like networking hardware to virtual machine
340.
[0167] As shown in FIG. 6, hardware 330 may be a standalone network
node with generic or specific components. Hardware 330 may comprise
antenna 3225 and may implement some functions via virtualization.
Alternatively, hardware 330 may be part of a larger cluster of
hardware (e.g. such as in a data center or customer premise
equipment (CPE)) where many hardware nodes work together and are
managed via management and orchestration (MANO) 3100, which, among
others, oversees lifecycle management of applications 320.
[0168] Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred
to as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to
consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard
high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical
storage, which can be located in data centers, and customer premise
equipment.
[0169] In the context of NFV, virtual machine 340 may be a software
implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they
were executing on a physical, non-virtualized machine. Each of
virtual machines 340, and that part of hardware 330 that executes
that virtual machine, be it hardware dedicated to that virtual
machine and/or hardware shared by that virtual machine with others
of the virtual machines 340, forms a separate virtual network
elements (VNE).
[0170] Still in the context of NFV, Virtual Network Function (VNF)
is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in
one or more virtual machines 340 on top of hardware networking
infrastructure 330 and corresponds to application 320 in FIG.
6.
[0171] In some embodiments, one or more radio units 3200 that each
include one or more transmitters 3220 and one or more receivers
3210 may be coupled to one or more antennas 3225. Radio units 3200
may communicate directly with hardware nodes 330 via one or more
appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with
the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio
capabilities, such as a radio access node or a base station.
[0172] In some embodiments, some signaling can be affected with the
use of control system 3230 which may alternatively be used for
communication between the hardware nodes 330 and radio units
3200.
[0173] FIG. 7 illustrates a telecommunication network connected via
an intermediate network to a host computer in accordance with some
embodiments.
[0174] With reference to FIG. 7, in accordance with an embodiment,
a communication system includes telecommunication network 410, such
as a 3GPP-type cellular network, which comprises access network
411, such as a radio access network, and core network 414. Access
network 411 comprises a plurality of base stations 412a, 412b,
412c, such as NBs, eNBs, gNBs or other types of wireless access
points, each defining a corresponding coverage area 413a, 413b,
413c. Each base station 412a, 412b, 412c is connectable to core
network 414 over a wired or wireless connection 415. A first UE 491
located in coverage area 413c is configured to wirelessly connect
to, or be paged by, the corresponding base station 412c. A second
UE 492 in coverage area 413a is wirelessly connectable to the
corresponding base station 412a. While a plurality of UEs 491, 492
are illustrated in this example, the disclosed embodiments are
equally applicable to a situation where a sole UE is in the
coverage area or where a sole UE is connecting to the corresponding
base station 412.
[0175] Telecommunication network 410 is itself connected to host
computer 430, which may be embodied in the hardware and/or software
of a standalone server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed
server or as processing resources in a server farm. Host computer
430 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider or
may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service
provider. Connections 421 and 422 between telecommunication network
410 and host computer 430 may extend directly from core network 414
to host computer 430 or may go via an optional intermediate network
420. Intermediate network 420 may be one of, or a combination of
more than one of, a public, private or hosted network; intermediate
network 420, if any, may be a backbone network or the Internet; in
particular, intermediate network 420 may comprise two or more
sub-networks (not shown).
[0176] The communication system of FIG. 7 as a whole enables
connectivity between the connected UEs 491, 492 and host computer
430. The connectivity may be described as an over-the-top (OTT)
connection 450. Host computer 430 and the connected UEs 491, 492
are configured to communicate data and/or signaling via OTT
connection 450, using access network 411, core network 414, any
intermediate network 420 and possible further infrastructure (not
shown) as intermediaries. OTT connection 450 may be transparent in
the sense that the participating communication devices through
which OTT connection 450 passes are unaware of routing of uplink
and downlink communications. For example, base station 412 may not
or need not be informed about the past routing of an incoming
downlink communication with data originating from host computer 430
to be forwarded (e.g., handed over) to a connected UE 491.
Similarly, base station 412 need not be aware of the future routing
of an outgoing uplink communication originating from the UE 491
towards the host computer 430.
[0177] FIG. 8 illustrates a host computer communicating via a base
station with a user equipment over a partially wireless connection
in accordance with some embodiments.
[0178] Example implementations, in accordance with an embodiment,
of the UE, base station and host computer discussed in the
preceding paragraphs will now be described with reference to FIG.
8. In communication system 500, host computer 510 comprises
hardware 515 including communication interface 516 configured to
set up and maintain a wired or wireless connection with an
interface of a different communication device of communication
system 500. Host computer 510 further comprises processing
circuitry 518, which may have storage and/or processing
capabilities. In particular, processing circuitry 518 may comprise
one or more programmable processors, application-specific
integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations
of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. Host computer
510 further comprises software 511, which is stored in or
accessible by host computer 510 and executable by processing
circuitry 518. Software 511 includes host application 512. Host
application 512 may be operable to provide a service to a remote
user, such as UE 530 connecting via OTT connection 550 terminating
at UE 530 and host computer 510. In providing the service to the
remote user, host application 512 may provide user data which is
transmitted using OTT connection 550.
[0179] Communication system 500 further includes base station 520
provided in a telecommunication system and comprising hardware 525
enabling it to communicate with host computer 510 and with UE 530.
Hardware 525 may include communication interface 526 for setting up
and maintaining a wired or wireless connection with an interface of
a different communication device of communication system 500, as
well as radio interface 527 for setting up and maintaining at least
wireless connection 570 with UE 530 located in a coverage area (not
shown in FIG. 8) served by base station 520. Communication
interface 526 may be configured to facilitate connection 560 to
host computer 510. Connection 560 may be direct or it may pass
through a core network (not shown in FIG. 8) of the
telecommunication system and/or through one or more intermediate
networks outside the telecommunication system. In the embodiment
shown, hardware 525 of base station 520 further includes processing
circuitry 528, which may comprise one or more programmable
processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field
programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown)
adapted to execute instructions. Base station 520 further has
software 521 stored internally or accessible via an external
connection.
[0180] Communication system 500 further includes UE 530 already
referred to. Its hardware 535 may include radio interface 537
configured to set up and maintain wireless connection 570 with a
base station serving a coverage area in which UE 530 is currently
located. Hardware 535 of UE 530 further includes processing
circuitry 538, which may comprise one or more programmable
processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field
programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown)
adapted to execute instructions. UE 530 further comprises software
531, which is stored in or accessible by UE 530 and executable by
processing circuitry 538. Software 531 includes client application
532. Client application 532 may be operable to provide a service to
a human or non-human user via UE 530, with the support of host
computer 510. In host computer 510, an executing host application
512 may communicate with the executing client application 532 via
OTT connection 550 terminating at UE 530 and host computer 510. In
providing the service to the user, client application 532 may
receive request data from host application 512 and provide user
data in response to the request data. OTT connection 550 may
transfer both the request data and the user data. Client
application 532 may interact with the user to generate the user
data that it provides.
[0181] It is noted that host computer 510, base station 520 and UE
530 illustrated in FIG. 8 may be similar or identical to host
computer 430, one of base stations 412a, 412b, 412c and one of UEs
491, 492 of FIG. 5, respectively. This is to say, the inner
workings of these entities may be as shown in FIG. 6 and
independently, the surrounding network topology may be that of FIG.
5.
[0182] In FIG. 8, OTT connection 550 has been drawn abstractly to
illustrate the communication between host computer 510 and UE 530
via base station 520, without explicit reference to any
intermediary devices and the precise routing of messages via these
devices. Network infrastructure may determine the routing, which it
may be configured to hide from UE 530 or from the service provider
operating host computer 510, or both. While OTT connection 550 is
active, the network infrastructure may further take decisions by
which it dynamically changes the routing (e.g., on the basis of
load balancing consideration or reconfiguration of the
network).
[0183] Wireless connection 570 between UE 530 and base station 520
is in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described
throughout this disclosure. One or more of the various embodiments
improve the performance of OTT services provided to UE 530 using
OTT connection 550, in which wireless connection 570 forms the last
segment. More precisely, the teachings of these embodiments may
improve the data rate, latency, and/or power consumption and
thereby provide benefits such as reduced user waiting time, relaxed
restriction on file size, better responsiveness, and/or extended
battery lifetime.
[0184] A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of
monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or
more embodiments improve. There may further be an optional network
functionality for reconfiguring OTT connection 550 between host
computer 510 and UE 530, in response to variations in the
measurement results. The measurement procedure and/or the network
functionality for reconfiguring OTT connection 550 may be
implemented in software 511 and hardware 515 of host computer 510
or in software 531 and hardware 535 of UE 530, or both. In
embodiments, sensors (not shown) may be deployed in or in
association with communication devices through which OTT connection
550 passes; the sensors may participate in the measurement
procedure by supplying values of the monitored quantities
exemplified above or supplying values of other physical quantities
from which software 511, 531 may compute or estimate the monitored
quantities. The reconfiguring of OTT connection 550 may include
message format, retransmission settings, preferred routing etc.;
the reconfiguring need not affect base station 520, and it may be
unknown or imperceptible to base station 520. Such procedures and
functionalities may be known and practiced in the art. In certain
embodiments, measurements may involve proprietary UE signaling
facilitating host computer 510's measurements of throughput,
propagation times, latency and the like. The measurements may be
implemented in that software 511 and 531 causes messages to be
transmitted, in particular empty or `dummy` messages, using OTT
connection 550 while it monitors propagation times, errors etc.
[0185] FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a
communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The
communication system includes a host computer, a base station and a
UE which may be those described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.
For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references
to FIG. 9 will be included in this section. In step 610, the host
computer provides user data. In substep 611 (which may be optional)
of step 610, the host computer provides the user data by executing
a host application. In step 620, the host computer initiates a
transmission carrying the user data to the UE. In step 630 (which
may be optional), the base station transmits to the UE the user
data which was carried in the transmission that the host computer
initiated, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments
described throughout this disclosure. In step 640 (which may also
be optional), the UE executes a client application associated with
the host application executed by the host computer.
[0186] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in
a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The
communication system includes a host computer, a base station and a
UE which may be those described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.
For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references
to FIG. 10 will be included in this section. In step 710 of the
method, the host computer provides user data. In an optional
substep (not shown) the host computer provides the user data by
executing a host application. In step 720, the host computer
initiates a transmission carrying the user data to the UE. The
transmission may pass via the base station, in accordance with the
teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure.
In step 730 (which may be optional), the UE receives the user data
carried in the transmission.
[0187] FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in
a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The
communication system includes a host computer, a base station and a
UE which may be those described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.
For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references
to FIG. 11 will be included in this section. In step 810 (which may
be optional), the UE receives input data provided by the host
computer. Additionally or alternatively, in step 820, the UE
provides user data. In substep 821 (which may be optional) of step
820, the UE provides the user data by executing a client
application. In substep 811 (which may be optional) of step 810,
the UE executes a client application which provides the user data
in reaction to the received input data provided by the host
computer. In providing the user data, the executed client
application may further consider user input received from the user.
Regardless of the specific manner in which the user data was
provided, the UE initiates, in substep 830 (which may be optional),
transmission of the user data to the host computer. In step 840 of
the method, the host computer receives the user data transmitted
from the UE, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments
described throughout this disclosure.
[0188] FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in
a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The
communication system includes a host computer, a base station and a
UE which may be those described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.
For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references
to FIG. 12 will be included in this section. In step 910 (which may
be optional), in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments
described throughout this disclosure, the base station receives
user data from the UE. In step 920 (which may be optional), the
base station initiates transmission of the received user data to
the host computer. In step 930 (which may be optional), the host
computer receives the user data carried in the transmission
initiated by the base station.
[0189] FIG. 13 depicts a method 1000 by a UE, according to certain
embodiments. The method begins at step 1002, when the UE determines
that the UE has data to transmit on at least one normal logical
channel of a normal priority, the normal logical channel being
associated with at least one logical channel group. At step 1004,
the wireless device generates a normal BSR for the at least one
normal logical channel of the normal priority. In response to
determining that the UE has no data to transmit on any other
logical channel in the at least one logical channel group with
which the normal logical channel group is associated, the UE
prioritizes a transmission of the normal BSR for the at least one
normal logical channel associated with the normal logical channel
group over a transmission for at least one critical logical channel
of a critical priority that is higher than the normal priority, at
step 1006.
[0190] FIG. 14 illustrates a schematic block diagram of a virtual
apparatus 1100 in a wireless network (for example, the wireless
network shown in FIG. 2). The apparatus may be implemented in a UE
or other wireless device (e.g., wireless device 110 or network node
160 shown in FIG. 2). Apparatus 1100 is operable to carry out the
example method described with reference to FIG. 13 and possibly any
other processes or methods disclosed herein. It is also to be
understood that the method of FIG. 13 is not necessarily carried
out solely by apparatus 1100. At least some operations of the
method can be performed by one or more other entities.
[0191] Virtual Apparatus 1100 may comprise processing circuitry,
which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers,
as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal
processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The
processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code
stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory
such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory, cache memory,
flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code
stored in memory includes program instructions for executing one or
more telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as
well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques
described herein, in several embodiments. In some implementations,
the processing circuitry may be used to cause determining module
1110, generating module 1120, prioritizing module 1130, and any
other suitable units of apparatus 1100 to perform corresponding
functions according one or more embodiments of the present
disclosure.
[0192] According to certain embodiments, determining module 1110
may perform certain of the determining functions of the apparatus
1100. For example, determining module 1110 may determine that the
UE has data to transmit on at least one normal logical channel of a
normal priority, wherein the normal logical channel is associated
with at least one logical channel group.
[0193] According to certain embodiments, generating module 1120 may
perform certain of the generating functions of the apparatus 1100.
For example, generating module 1120 may generate a normal BSR for
the at least one normal logical channel of the normal priority.
[0194] According to certain embodiments, prioritizing module 1130
may perform certain of the prioritizing functions of the apparatus
1100. For example, prioritizing module 1130 may prioritize a
transmission of the normal BSR for the at least one normal logical
channel associated with the normal logical channel group over a
transmission for at least one critical logical channel of a
critical priority that is higher than the normal priority in
response to determining that the UE has no data to transmit on any
other logical channel in the at least one logical channel group
with which the normal logical channel group is associated.
[0195] The term unit may have conventional meaning in the field of
electronics, electrical devices and/or electronic devices and may
include, for example, electrical and/or electronic circuitry,
devices, modules, processors, memories, logic solid state and/or
discrete devices, computer programs or instructions for carrying
out respective tasks, procedures, computations, outputs, and/or
displaying functions, and so on, as such as those that are
described herein.
[0196] FIG. 15 depicts another method 1200 by a wireless device 110
such as a UE, for example, according to certain embodiments. The
method begins at step 1202 when wireless device 110 determines that
the wireless device 110 has data to transmit on at least one
logical channel of a priority N. The logical channel is associated
with at least one logical channel group. At step 1204, wireless
device 110 generates a BSR N for the at least one logical channel
of the priority N. At step 1206, wireless device 110 prioritizes a
transmission of the BSR N for the at least one logical channel of
priority N over a data transmission for at least one logical
channel that has a priority that is higher than the priority N.
[0197] In a particular embodiment, the transmitted BSR N is a long
or normal BSR that includes information pertaining to all logical
channel groups for which there is data available for transmission
in the wireless device. The BSR N may not be limited to indicating
that there is data available for a single logical channel group
supporting a non-critical logical channel of priority N.
[0198] In a particular embodiment, wireless device 110 starts a
timer when the BSR N is generated. The transmission of the BSR N is
prioritized over the transmission for the at least one other
logical channel having the priority that is higher than the
priority N in response to expiration of the timer.
[0199] In a particular embodiment, the priority N of the BSR N is
increased in response to expiration of the timer to a level that is
equal to or greater than the priority that is higher than the
priority N associated with the at least one other logical
channel.
[0200] In a particular embodiment, wireless device 110 places the
data associated with the logical channel of priority N into a MAC
PDU and transmits the MAC PDU to a network node 160.
[0201] In a particular embodiment, wireless device 110 determines
that an amount of the data that the wireless device 110 has to
transmit on the at least one other logical channel is greater than
a threshold. The transmission of the BSR N is prioritized over the
transmission for the at least one other logical channel having the
priority that is higher than the priority N of the BSR N in
response to determining that the amount of the data is greater than
the threshold.
[0202] In a particular embodiment, the wireless device 110
determines an amount of time that the data associated with the at
least one logical channel of priority N has been waiting in a
buffer. The transmission of the BSR N is prioritized over the
transmission for the at least one other logical channel having the
priority that is higher than the priority N in response to
determining that the amount of time is greater than a
threshold.
[0203] In a particular embodiment, the data associated with the at
least one other logical channel is data from critical Logical
Channel.
[0204] FIG. 16 illustrates a schematic block diagram of another
virtual apparatus 1300 in a wireless network (for example, the
wireless network shown in FIG. 2). The apparatus may be implemented
in a UE or other wireless device (e.g., wireless device 110 or
network node 160 shown in FIG. 2). Apparatus 1300 is operable to
carry out the example method described with reference to FIG. 15
and possibly any other processes or methods disclosed herein. It is
also to be understood that the method of FIG. 15 is not necessarily
carried out solely by apparatus 1300. At least some operations of
the method can be performed by one or more other entities.
[0205] Virtual Apparatus 1300 may comprise processing circuitry,
which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers,
as well as other digital hardware, which may include DSPs,
special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing
circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in
memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as
ROM, random-access memory, cache memory, flash memory devices,
optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory
includes program instructions for executing one or more
telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as
instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques
described herein, in several embodiments. In some implementations,
the processing circuitry may be used to cause determining module
1310, generating module 1320, prioritizing module 1330, and any
other suitable units of apparatus 1300 to perform corresponding
functions according one or more embodiments of the present
disclosure.
[0206] According to certain embodiments, determining module 1310
may perform certain of the determining functions of the apparatus
1300. For example, determining module 1310 may determine that the
wireless device 110 has data to transmit on at least one logical
channel of a priority N. The logical channel is associated with at
least one logical channel group.
[0207] According to certain embodiments, generating module 1320 may
perform certain of the generating functions of the apparatus 1300.
For example, generating module 1320 may generate a BSR N for the at
least one logical channel of the priority N.
[0208] According to certain embodiments, prioritizing module 1330
may perform certain of the prioritizing functions of the apparatus
1300. For example, prioritizing module 1330 may prioritize a
transmission of the BSR N for the at least one logical channel of
priority N over a data transmission for at least one other other
logical channel that has a priority that is higher than the
priority N.
[0209] The term unit may have conventional meaning in the field of
electronics, electrical devices and/or electronic devices and may
include, for example, electrical and/or electronic circuitry,
devices, modules, processors, memories, logic solid state and/or
discrete devices, computer programs or instructions for carrying
out respective tasks, procedures, computations, outputs, and/or
displaying functions, and so on, as such as those that are
described herein.
[0210] FIG. 17 depicts a method by a base station or other network
node, according to certain embodiments. The method begins at step
1400 when the base station transmits, to a UE, information
associating at least one normal logical channel with a normal
priority and at least one critical logical channel with a critical
priority. The normal logical channel is associated with at least
one logical channel group. At step 1410, the base station receives,
from the UE, a BSR associated with data to be transmitted on the at
least one normal logical channel of the normal priority. The BSR,
which is associated with the data to be transmitted on the at least
one normal logical channel, is prioritized over a transmission for
at least one critical logical channel of a critical priority that
is higher than the normal priority.
[0211] FIG. 18 illustrates a schematic block diagram of another
virtual apparatus 1500 in a wireless network (for example, the
wireless network shown in FIG. 2). The apparatus may be implemented
in a wireless device or network node (e.g., wireless device 110 or
network node 160 shown in FIG. 2). Apparatus 1500 is operable to
carry out the example method described with reference to FIG. 17
and possibly any other processes or methods disclosed herein. It is
also to be understood that the method of FIG. 17 is not necessarily
carried out solely by apparatus 1500. At least some operations of
the method can be performed by one or more other entities.
[0212] Virtual Apparatus 1500 may comprise processing circuitry,
which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers,
as well as other digital hardware, which may include DSPs,
special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing
circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in
memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as
ROM, random-access memory, cache memory, flash memory devices,
optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory
includes program instructions for executing one or more
telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as
instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques
described herein, in several embodiments. In some implementations,
the processing circuitry may be used to cause transmitting module
1510, receiving module 1520, and any other suitable units of
apparatus 1500 to perform corresponding functions according one or
more embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0213] According to certain embodiments, transmitting module 1510
may perform certain of the transmitting functions of the apparatus
1500. For example, transmitting module 1510 may transmit, to a UE,
information associating at least one normal logical channel with a
normal priority and at least one critical logical channel with a
critical priority. The normal logical channel is associated with at
least one logical channel group.
[0214] According to certain embodiments, receiving module 1520 may
perform certain of the receiving functions of the apparatus 1500.
For example, receiving module 1520 may receive, from the UE, a
buffer status report (BSR) associated with data to be transmitted
on the at least one normal logical channel of the normal priority.
The BSR, which is associated with the data to be transmitted on the
at least one normal logical channel, is prioritized over a
transmission for at least one critical logical channel of a
critical priority that is higher than the normal priority.
[0215] The term unit may have conventional meaning in the field of
electronics, electrical devices and/or electronic devices and may
include, for example, electrical and/or electronic circuitry,
devices, modules, processors, memories, logic solid state and/or
discrete devices, computer programs or instructions for carrying
out respective tasks, procedures, computations, outputs, and/or
displaying functions, and so on, as such as those that are
described herein.
[0216] FIG. 19 depicts another method 1600 by a network node 160,
according to certain embodiments. The method begins at step 1602
when the network node 160 transmits, to a wireless device 110,
information associating at least one logical channel with a
priority N and at least one other logical channel with a priority
that is higher than the priority N. The at least one logical
channel is associated with at least one logical channel group. At
step 1604, the network node 160 receives, from the wireless device
110, a BSR N associated with data to be transmitted on the at least
one logical channel of the priority N. The BSR N associated with
the data to be transmitted on the at least one logical channel with
the priority N is prioritized over a data transmission for the at
least one other logical channel of the priority that is higher than
the priority N.
[0217] In a particular embodiment, the received BSR N is a long or
normal BSR that includes information pertaining to all logical
channel groups for which there is data available for transmission
in the wireless device 110. The BSR N may not be limited to
indicating that there is data available for a single logical
channel group supporting a non-critical logical channel of priority
N.
[0218] In a particular embodiment, the priority N of the logical
channel is increased by the wireless device 110 in response to an
expiration of a timer. The priority N in increased to a level that
is equal to or greater than the priority that is higher than the
priority N.
[0219] In a particular embodiment, the BSR N associated with the
logical channel with the priority N is received as part of a MAC
PDU.
[0220] In a particular embodiment, an amount of the data that the
wireless device 110 has to transmit on the at least one other
logical channel is greater than a threshold, and the transmission
of the BSR N is prioritized over the transmission for the at least
one other logical channel having the priority that is higher than
the priority N in response to determining that the amount of the
data is greater than the threshold.
[0221] In a particular embodiment, the transmission of the BSR N is
prioritized over the transmission for the at least one other
logical channel having the priority that is higher than the
priority N in response to determining that an amount of time that
the data associated with the at least one logical channel of
priority N has been waiting in a buffer N is greater than a
threshold.
[0222] In a particular embodiment, the data associated with the at
least one other logical channel comprises data from critical
Logical Channel.
[0223] FIG. 20 illustrates a schematic block diagram of another
virtual apparatus 1700 in a wireless network (for example, the
wireless network shown in FIG. 2). The apparatus may be implemented
in a wireless device or network node (e.g., wireless device 110 or
network node 160 shown in FIG. 2). Apparatus 1700 is operable to
carry out the example method described with reference to FIG. 19
and possibly any other processes or methods disclosed herein. It is
also to be understood that the method of FIG. 19 is not necessarily
carried out solely by apparatus 1700. At least some operations of
the method can be performed by one or more other entities.
[0224] Virtual Apparatus 1700 may comprise processing circuitry,
which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers,
as well as other digital hardware, which may include DSPs,
special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing
circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in
memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as
ROM, random-access memory, cache memory, flash memory devices,
optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory
includes program instructions for executing one or more
telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as
instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques
described herein, in several embodiments. In some implementations,
the processing circuitry may be used to cause transmitting module
1710, receiving module 1720, and any other suitable units of
apparatus 1700 to perform corresponding functions according one or
more embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0225] According to certain embodiments, transmitting module 1710
may perform certain of the transmitting functions of the apparatus
1700. For example, transmitting module 1710 may transmit, to a
wireless device 110, information associating at least one logical
channel with a priority N and at least one other logical channel
with a priority that is higher than the priority N. The at least
oen logical channel is associated with at least one logical channel
group.
[0226] According to certain embodiments, receiving module 1720 may
perform certain of the receiving functions of the apparatus 1700.
For example, receiving module 1720 may receive, from the wireless
device 110, a BSR N associated with data to be transmitted on the
at least one logical channel of the priority N. The BSR N
associated with the data to be transmitted on the at least one
logical channel with the priority N is prioritized over a data
transmission for the at least one other logical channel of the
priority that is higher than the priority N.
[0227] The term unit may have conventional meaning in the field of
electronics, electrical devices and/or electronic devices and may
include, for example, electrical and/or electronic circuitry,
devices, modules, processors, memories, logic solid state and/or
discrete devices, computer programs or instructions for carrying
out respective tasks, procedures, computations, outputs, and/or
displaying functions, and so on, as such as those that are
described herein.
Example Embodiments
[0228] Embodiment 1. A method performed by a wireless device for
improving network efficiency, the method comprising: [0229]
determining that the wireless device has data to transmit on at
least one normal logical channel of a normal priority, the normal
logical channel being associated with at least one logical channel
group; [0230] generating a normal buffer status report (BSR) for
the at least one normal logical channel of the normal priority; and
[0231] in response to determining that the wireless device has no
data to transmit on any other logical channel in the at least one
logical channel group with which the normal logical channel group
is associated, prioritizing a transmission of the normal BSR for
the at least one normal logical channel associated with the normal
logical channel group over a transmission for at least one critical
logical channel of a critical priority that is higher than the
normal priority. Embodiment 2. The method of Embodiment 1, further
comprising starting a timer when the normal BSR is generated, and
wherein the transmission of the normal BSR is prioritized over the
transmission for the critical logical channel in response to
expiration of the timer. Embodiment 3. The method of Embodiment 2,
wherein the normal priority of the normal BSR is increased in
response to expiration of the timer to a level that is equal to or
greater than the critical priority associated with the critical
logical channel. Embodiment 4. The method of Embodiment 2, further
comprising placing the data associated with the normal logical
channel into a medium access control protocol data unit (MAC PDU)
and transmitting the MAC PDU to a network node. Embodiment 5. The
method of any one of Embodiments 1 to 4, further comprising
determining that an amount of the data that the wireless device has
to transmit on the at least one normal logical channel is greater
than a threshold, and wherein the transmission of the normal BSR is
prioritized over the transmission for the at least one critical
logical channel in response to determining that the amount of the
data is greater than the threshold. Embodiment 6. The method of any
one of Embodiments 1 to 5, further comprising determining an amount
of time that the data associated with the at least one normal
logical channel has been waiting in a BSR buffer, and wherein the
transmission of the normal BSR is prioritized over the transmission
for the at least one critical logical channel in response to
determining that the amount of time is greater than a threshold.
Embodiment 7. The method of any one of Embodiments 1 to 6, wherein
the data associated with the at least one normal logical channel
comprises a C-RNTI MAC control element. Embodiment 8. The method of
any one of Embodiments 1 to 6, wherein the data associated with the
at least one normal logical channel comprises uplink-common control
channel (UL-CCCH). Embodiment 9. A computer program comprising
instructions which when executed on a computer perform any of the
methods of Embodiments 1 to 8. Embodiment 10. A computer program
product comprising computer program, the computer program
comprising instructions which when executed on a computer perform
any of the methods of embodiments 1 to 8. Embodiment 11. A
non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions which
when executed by a computer perform any of the methods of
embodiments 1 to 8. Embodiment 12. A method performed by a network
node for improving network efficiency, the method comprising:
[0232] transmitting, to a wireless device, information associating
at least one normal logical channel with a normal priority and at
least one critical logical channel with a critical priority,
wherein the normal logical channel is associated with at least one
logical channel group; [0233] receiving, from the wireless device,
a buffer status report (BSR) associated with data to be transmitted
on the at least one normal logical channel of the normal priority,
wherein the BSR associated with the data to be transmitted on the
at least one normal logical channel is prioritized over a
transmission for at least one critical logical channel of a
critical priority that is higher than the normal priority.
Embodiment 13. The method of Embodiment 12, wherein the normal
priority of the normal logical channel is increased by the wireless
device in response to an expiration of a timer, the normal priority
increased to a level that is equal to or greater than the critical
priority associated with the critical logical channel. Embodiment
14. The method of Embodiment 12, wherein the data associated with
the normal logical channel is received as a medium access control
protocol data unit (MAC PDU). Embodiment 15. The method of any one
of Embodiments 12 to 14, wherein an amount of the data that the
wireless device has to transmit on the at least one normal logical
channel is greater than a threshold, and wherein the transmission
of the normal BSR is prioritized over the transmission for the at
least one critical logical channel in response to determining that
the amount of the data is greater than the threshold. Embodiment
16. The method of any one of Embodiments 12 to 15, wherein the
transmission of the normal BSR is prioritized over the transmission
for the at least one critical logical channel in response to
determining that an amount of time that the data associated with
the at least one normal logical channel has been waiting in a BSR
buffer is greater than a threshold. Embodiment 17. The method of
any one of Embodiments 12 to 16, wherein the data associated with
the at least one normal logical channel comprises a C-RNTI MAC
control element. Embodiment 18. The method of any one of
Embodiments 12 to 16, wherein the data associated with the at least
one normal logical channel comprises uplink-common control channel
(UL-CCCH). Embodiment 19. A computer program comprising
instructions which when executed on a computer perform any of the
methods of Embodiments 12 to 18. Embodiment A computer program
product comprising computer program, the computer program
comprising instructions which when executed on a computer perform
any of the methods of embodiments 12 to 18. Embodiment 21. A
non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions which
when executed by a computer perform any of the methods of
embodiments 12 to 18. Embodiment 22. A wireless device for
improving network efficiency, the wireless device comprising:
[0234] processing circuitry configured to perform any of the steps
of any of Embodiments 1 to 8; and [0235] power supply circuitry
configured to supply power to the wireless device. Embodiment 23. A
base station for improving network efficiency, the base station
comprising: [0236] processing circuitry configured to perform any
of the steps of any of Embodiments 12 to 18; [0237] power supply
circuitry configured to supply power to the wireless device.
Abbreviations
[0238] At least some of the following abbreviations may be used in
this disclosure. If there is an inconsistency between
abbreviations, preference should be given to how it is used above.
If listed multiple times below, the first listing should be
preferred over any subsequent listing(s). [0239] 1.times.RTT
CDMA2000 1.times.Radio Transmission Technology [0240] 3GPP 3rd
Generation Partnership Project [0241] 5G 5th Generation [0242] 5GS
5G System [0243] 5QI 5G QoS Identifier [0244] ABS Almost Blank
Subframe [0245] AN Access Network [0246] AN Access Node [0247] ARQ
Automatic Repeat Request [0248] AS Access Stratum [0249] AWGN
Additive White Gaussian Noise [0250] BCCH Broadcast Control Channel
[0251] BCH Broadcast Channel [0252] CA Carrier Aggregation [0253]
CC Carrier Component [0254] CCCH SDU Common Control Channel SDU
[0255] CDMA Code Division Multiplexing Access [0256] CGI Cell
Global Identifier [0257] CIR Channel Impulse Response [0258] CN
Core Network [0259] CP Cyclic Prefix [0260] CPICH Common Pilot
Channel [0261] CPICH Ec/No CPICH Received energy per chip divided
by the power density in the band [0262] CQI Channel Quality
information [0263] C-RNTI Cell RNTI [0264] CSI Channel State
Information [0265] DCCH Dedicated Control Channel [0266] DL
Downlink [0267] DM Demodulation [0268] DMRS Demodulation Reference
Signal [0269] DRX Discontinuous Reception [0270] DTX Discontinuous
Transmission [0271] DTCH Dedicated Traffic Channel [0272] DUT
Device Under Test [0273] E-CID Enhanced Cell-ID (positioning
method) [0274] E-SMLC Evolved-Serving Mobile Location Centre [0275]
ECGI Evolved CGI [0276] eMBB Enhanced Mobile BroadBand [0277] eNB
E-UTRAN NodeB [0278] ePDCCH enhanced Physical Downlink Control
Channel [0279] EPS Evolved Packet System [0280] E-SMLC evolved
Serving Mobile Location Center [0281] E-UTRA Evolved UTRA [0282]
E-UTRAN Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network [0283]
FDD Frequency Division Duplex [0284] FFS For Further Study [0285]
GERAN GSM EDGE Radio Access Network [0286] gNB gNode B (a base
station in NR; a Node B supporting NR and connectivity to NGC)
[0287] GNSS Global Navigation Satellite System [0288] GSM Global
System for Mobile communication [0289] HARQ Hybrid Automatic Repeat
Request [0290] HO Handover [0291] HSPA High Speed Packet Access
[0292] HRPD High Rate Packet Data [0293] LOS Line of Sight [0294]
LPP LTE Positioning Protocol [0295] LTE Long-Term Evolution [0296]
MAC Medium Access Control [0297] MBMS Multimedia Broadcast
Multicast Services [0298] MBSFN Multimedia Broadcast multicast
service Single Frequency Network [0299] MBSFN ABS MBSFN Almost
Blank Subframe [0300] MDT Minimization of Drive Tests [0301] MIB
Master Information Block [0302] MME Mobility Management Entity
[0303] MSC Mobile Switching Center [0304] NGC Next Generation Core
[0305] NPDCCH Narrowband Physical Downlink Control Channel [0306]
NR New Radio [0307] OCNG OFDMA Channel Noise Generator [0308] OFDM
Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing [0309] OFDMA Orthogonal
Frequency Division Multiple Access [0310] OSS Operations Support
System [0311] OTDOA Observed Time Difference of Arrival [0312]
O&M Operation and Maintenance [0313] PBCH Physical Broadcast
Channel [0314] P-CCPCH Primary Common Control Physical Channel
[0315] PCell Primary Cell [0316] PCFICH Physical Control Format
Indicator Channel [0317] PDCCH Physical Downlink Control Channel
[0318] PDP Profile Delay Profile [0319] PDSCH Physical Downlink
Shared Channel [0320] PGW Packet Gateway [0321] PHICH Physical
Hybrid-ARQ Indicator Channel [0322] PLMN Public Land Mobile Network
[0323] PMI Precoder Matrix Indicator [0324] PRACH Physical Random
Access Channel [0325] PRS Positioning Reference Signal [0326] PS
Packet Switched [0327] PSS Primary Synchronization Signal [0328]
PUCCH Physical Uplink Control Channel [0329] PUSCH Physical Uplink
Shared Channel [0330] RACH Random Access Channel [0331] QAM
Quadrature Amplitude Modulation [0332] RAB Radio Access Bearer
[0333] RAN Radio Access Network [0334] RANAP Radio Access Network
Application Part [0335] RAT Radio Access Technology [0336] RLM
Radio Link Management [0337] RNC Radio Network Controller [0338]
RNTI Radio Network Temporary Identifier [0339] RRC Radio Resource
Control [0340] RRM Radio Resource Management [0341] RS Reference
Signal [0342] RSCP Received Signal Code Power [0343] RSRP Reference
Symbol Received Power OR Reference Signal Received Power [0344]
RSRQ Reference Signal Received Quality OR Reference Symbol Received
Quality [0345] RSSI Received Signal Strength Indicator [0346] RSTD
Reference Signal Time Difference [0347] RWR Release with Redirect
[0348] SCH Synchronization Channel [0349] SCell Secondary Cell
[0350] SCS Subcarrier Spacing [0351] SDU Service Data Unit [0352]
SFN System Frame Number [0353] SGW Serving Gateway [0354] SI System
Information [0355] SIB System Information Block [0356] SNR Signal
to Noise Ratio [0357] S-NSSAI Single Network Slice Selection
Assistance Information [0358] SON Self Optimized Network [0359] SS
Synchronization Signal [0360] SSS Secondary Synchronization Signal
[0361] TBS Transport Block Size [0362] TDD Time Division Duplex
[0363] TDOA Time Difference of Arrival [0364] TOA Time of Arrival
[0365] TSS Tertiary Synchronization Signal [0366] TTI Transmission
Time Interval [0367] UE User Equipment [0368] UL Uplink [0369] UMTS
Universal Mobile Telecommunication System [0370] USIM Universal
Subscriber Identity Module [0371] UTDOA Uplink Time Difference of
Arrival [0372] UTRA Universal Terrestrial Radio Access [0373] UTRAN
Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network [0374] WCDMA Wide CDMA
[0375] WLAN Wide Local Area Network
* * * * *